what is conveyancing?

Conveyancing is a term that covers all the legal and statutory processes involved in the transfer of real estate. At Phoenix Conveyancing, we prepare contracts for sellers and advise purchasers on sale contracts. We are legally qualified to do so on your behalf and are the specialists in our field. You can be assured of the highest standards in service and expertise at all times.

without the legalese?

The main purpose of the Conveyancing process is to transfer the legal title or ownership of land and any improvements on that land, from one owner to another.

This is usually carried out by a Seller and a Buyer entering into a Contract for Sale, which sets out all the terms of the agreement in writing. There are occasions where a Contract is not used, such as property transfers between family members.

Once the Buyer and Seller have both agreed to all the terms of the Contract then the Contract is “exchanged”. This means that Contracts are physically swapped and the buyers conveyancer now holds the Contract signed by the seller and vice versa, and at this time the Contract becomes legally enforceable.

A 10% Deposit is usually paid on exchange of Contracts, however this amount may be reduced by agreement, or in some cases a Deposit Bond is used. With Residential properties there is also a 5 business day cooling off period during which the buyer may pull out of the Contract, but would lose 0.25% of their deposit if they did so. The Cooling Off period may be waived in some cases.

It is usually about 5 weeks (35 days) between exchange and settlement; however this time frame can be shortened or lengthened by agreement. During this time many actions need to be carried out such as searches are ordered to ensure that there are no outstanding interests or problems with the property, Stamp Duty must be paid to the government, a buyers loan must be processed and a sellers loan must be discharged.

Just prior to settlement the buyer should carry out a final inspection on the property to ensure that there is no damage and they are happy and ready to settle. On the day of settlement the buyer will pay the balance of the purchase price for the property to the seller, and the keys and title deed are made available to the buyer.

We will attend to settlement on your behalf, and we will ensure that all documents have been prepared and executed correctly, that all the money is correct and that everything is in order. We will then telephone or email you to advise that settlement has gone through.

The current Title Deed is then forwarded to Land & Property Information to advise of the change of ownership and then a new Title Deed is issued in the name of the new owner, with or without the name of the bank that has a financial interest in the property ie the mortgagee.